The ‘pot momma’ who convinced Washington state to legalise weed

Alison Holcomb is known as the architect of marijuana legalisation in Washington state and was labelled ‘pot momma’ by the press. She spoke to Simon Day about leading Washington state to legalising cannabis.

Because the government wasn’t going to do it, lawyer Alison Holcomb had to convince the public of Washington state to legalise cannabis themselves. In around half the US states, including Washington, voters have the power to pass laws at the ballot box. Her campaign focused on one block of voters. While a third already supported legalisation of cannabis, and a third were vehemently opposed and in fact supported tighter criminal sanctions for drugs. But another third sat in the middle, undecided – aware of the harm drug laws were doing, but unsure what to do about it. She drafted a bill based on alcohol regulation – age limit of 21, strict licensing rules, advertising – that she hoped would help them understand what cannabis law reform could achieve.